New Mexico Register / Volume XXXVII,
Issue 11 / June 9, 2026
This is an
amendment to 16.27.6 NMAC, amending Section 8, effective 06/09/2026.
16.27.6.8 SUPERVISION:
A. Supervision. No supervision is required to practice with a
LMFT independent license. The board
strongly recommends that all independently licensed counselors and therapists
have an ongoing consultation or peer review process in place.
B. Marriage
and family therapy core curriculum, means a curriculum for training marriage
and family therapists that includes 45 semester hours or 67.5 quarter hours of
graduate level coursework that embraces a family systems perspective and
consists of the following areas of graduate study:
(1) Marriage
and family studies- a minimum of nine semester hours or 12 quarter-hours of
graduate coursework. Course content in
this area may include the study of the family life cycle, family development,
family subsystems, family theories, blended families, gender issues and
families, cultural issues and families, contemporary families, family and
interpersonal relationships and family crisis.
All courses in this area must come from a systems perspective where
systems theory is a major focus of the course.
(2) Marriage
and family therapy - a minimum of nine semester hours or 12 quarter hours of
graduate coursework in family therapy assessment, treatment and intervention
methods. Major theoretical approaches
that may be studied include: strategic, structural, object relations family
therapy, behavioral family therapy, communication family therapy,
intergenerational family therapy and systemic sex therapy. Courses should have a major focus on family
systems theory and systemic interventions.
(3) Human
development - a minimum of nine semester hours or 12 quarter hours of graduate
coursework. Courses in human development
across the life span including special issues (e.g., culture, gender, human
sexuality) would be appropriate. Topic
areas may include human development, infant/child/adolescent development,
psychopathology, personality theory, and human sexuality. Courses should have a systemic focus. Testing and measurement courses are NOT
acceptable in this area.
(4) Multicultural
studies - a minimum of three semester hours or four quarter hours of graduate
coursework, includes a systemic orientation relevant to diverse racial ethnic
populations.
(5) Professional
studies- a minimum of three semester hours or four quarter hours of graduate
coursework. Areas of study include legal
issues and responsibilities, professional liabilities, and ethics related to
the practice of marriage and family therapy.
Religious ethics and moral theology courses are NOT acceptable in this
area.
(6) Research
a minimum of three semester hours or four quarter hours of graduate
coursework. Courses in this area should
assist the student in understanding and performing research. Topical areas may include: research design
and methodology, quantitative methods and statistics. Personality and test and measurement courses
are NOT accepted in this area.
(7) Supervised
practicum - a minimum of six semester hours or eight quarter hours of graduate
coursework. As part of the six semester
hours or eight quarter hours of coursework, there must be a minimum of 300
hours of supervised direct client contact, for a period of at least 12
months. Practicum students may only
count hours in which they work directly with individuals, couples, and families
for the purpose of assessment, diagnosis and treatment in marriage and family
related issues. Applicants who are deficit in the number of graduate credit hours
required for supervised practicum may apply through the alternative pathway as
detailed in 16.27.2.9 NMAC.
(8) Electives
from any area listed above satisfy the 45 semester-hour or 67.5 quarter hour
requirement. Remaining course work would
be distributed as electives related to the areas listed above.
[16.27.6.8
NMAC - Rp 16 NMAC 27.1.7.5, 6/15/2001; A, 7/1/2004; A, 2/10/2006; A, 11/30/2021; A, 06/09/2026]